Carton with integral spout



Jan. 9, 1968 I H. G. MOHLER 3,362,612

CARTON WITH INTEGRAL SPOUT Filed March 24, 1966 a Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

HARRY G, MOHLE R H. G. MOHLER Jan. 9, 1968 CARTON WITH INTEGRAL SPOUT 5 Sheets-Sheet .2

Filed March 24, 1966 INVENTOR.

H. G. MOHLER CARTON WITH INTEGRAL SPOUT Jan. 9,1968

5 sheets-sheet 5 Filed March 24, 1966 INVENTOR.

HARRY c. MOHLER United States Patent ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This is a description of a new and improved carton for packaging sugar and the like.

The portion of blank material from which the appendage of a container blank is formed is cut directly from the area of material defining the body of an adjacent container blank. More specifically, in this carton I provide the container blank therefor with an appendage that is an extension of a narrow end flap portion which is itself an extension of one of the narrower side panels of the container blank. Such arrangement results in a considerable long-run production savings and, in addition, coincidentally results in the desirable formation of a more rigid carton sidewall area adjacent the spout.

A second phase of my invention relates to the provision of a carton having a new and improved integral spout which is not only movable but recloseable after use so as to enable safe storage and preservation of the remaining contents of the carton.

This invention pertains to a container for finely divided particles and, more particularly, to a carton of cardboard or similar semi-rigid material which is provided with a unitarily-formed spout through which its contents may be poured, and to the method for its construction, beginning with a flat material blank.

In my U.S.. Patent No. 3,184,137 entitled Carton With Integral Spout, I disclosed an improved carton of cardboard or similar semi-rigid planar material provided with a movable pouring spout shaped from an integral part of the blank from which the carton is constructed. That nivention provided a practical and inexpensive method of constructing a carton and its pouring spout from one piece of material, whereas, previously such cartons had either required insertion of a spout device of metal or other material after the carton had been folded and formed from its original flat blank or, if integrally constructed, required the use of extensive and undesirable gluing and the use of excess amounts of blank material for the construction thereof.

While my earlier invention has proved to be extremely useful, particularly since it allows for simultaneous formation of a neatly designed movable spout member which does not interfere with the folding and shipping of the carton as a flat, I have observed that it would be extremely beneficial to even further reduce the cost of producing a carton with an integral spout while at the same time simplifying the method of constructing the carton and further, providing a new and improved spout incorporating new functional features.

More specifically, a first phase of my invention is directed to providing a new configuration for an integral spout carton blank which results in considerable savings of material which is presently lost as waste material when carton blanks are slit from a master blank.

Conventionally, in the stamp-cutting of such carton blanks, a substantially large semi-rigid sheet such as cardboard is utilized as a master blank from which separate individual carton blanks are to be taken. The design engi' neer, in laying out the cut lines of the master blank, must prepare a layout that will yield the greatest possible number of separate carton blanks from the master blank ice while holding to a minimum the amount of waste material which will be left over when the carton blanks are separated from the master. Here the engineers problem is similar to that which confronts a dressmaker or tailor in laying out a dress or a suit on a bolt of cloth; in such situations the savings of waste material of even one or two percent will result in a proportionate reduction in the selling price of the mass produced items.

My first carton with an integral spout for which I received the aforementioned patent is constructed from a carton blank having extended from its edge a lateral glue strip, and further extended from the glue strip is an appendage cut in such proportion that when folded back upon the adjacent carton side panel it cooperates with a perforated area in the panel to form an integral spout therewith.

That invention entails the use of considerably more material in the stamp cutting of separate carton blanks from a master blank as compared to the improved cartonpresented herein. Because of its configuration, the blank for my prior carton requires for the formation of its spout appendage the use of material out of the master blank of a size approximately three times greater than actually utilized in the spout. Thus there is a larger expanse of material used to stamp and cut the same number of separate carton blanks which may be obtained by my new method of carton construction.

In my new and improved carton, the portion of blank material from which the appendage of each container blank is formed is cut directly from the area of material defining the body of .an adjacent container blank. More specifically, in my new carton I provide the container blank therefore with an appendage that is an extension of a narrow end flap portion which is itself an extension of one of the narrower side panels of the container blank. Such arrangement results in a considerable longrun production savings and, in addition, coincidentally results in the desirable formation of a more rigid carton sidewall area adjacent the spout.

Cartons such as disclosed in my prior patent and also as disclosed in this specification are primarily used to provide a means of packaging granular material with such package being hermetically scalable so that the material therein can be maintained in a fresh and useable condition. Sealing the formed carton at all corners thereof prevents an undesirable change in the moisture content of the material and also prevents invasion of the contents of the carton by ants or other insects.

In the construction of my patented carton, on a side panel thereof, I provided two perforatedly-defined door sections which, when the perforations were broken, formed upper and lower cooperating doors, one hinged from above and the other hinged from below and both swinging about horizontal axes. The upper cooperating door constituted an access flap whereby a finger of the consumer could be inserted through the wall of the box to break the perforations and then the finger could be used to pull the spout piece out into pouring position. In the use of the carton it subsequently developed that the upper or swinging access door presented an undesirable characteristic. It was found that the upper access door swung too freely about its horizontal axis and, with the spout returned to its closed position the upper access door generally remained swung inward toward the interior of the carton or was left extending outwardly. No satisfactory means was provided that would tend to lock the upper access door in its original position so as to eliminate atmospheric communication to the interior of the carton when it was desirable to store the remaining contents.

Thus, a second phase of my invention relates to the 3 provision of a new carton having a new and improv d integral spout which is not only movable but recloseable after use so as to enable safe storage and preservation of the remaining contents of the carton.

In my present invention the upper access door constitutes a double wall construction with the inner wall portion thereof having a wider expanse than the portion which is exteriorly exposed. The ends of the laterallyelongated inner wall portion tend to abut against the inner surface of the panel wall to limit the are through which the upper access door can swing. In its unopened position prior to the breaking away of the perforations defining the lower edge of the access door, the door defines an angle of 90 to the top surface of the carton. Pressure from the finger or thumb on the surface of the access door to break the perforations will cause the door to move inwardly toward the interior of the carton to form an acute angle with the top surface of the carton. The laterally-extended ends of the inner wall portion of the access door, however, serve as stops to prevent the door from swinging outwardly to form an obtuse angle to the upper top surface of the carton. This feature is further designed to functionally cooperate in combination with the upper configuration of the spout piece. As will be described in greater detail hereafter, the upper edge of the spout piece is provided with a point or apex portion which extends upwardly to overlap the lower edge of the upper access door. Thus, when the spout is returned to its closed position, it can be pushed slightly past its original position in relation to its base panel so that its upper point will slide over and beyond the lower edge of the access door. Then, due to the nature of the semi-rigid material from which the carton has been formed, release of finger pressure on the outer surface of the spout results in its swinging back to a position at approximately 180 to its base panel, with its upper tip or apex abutted against the inner surface of the lower edge of the access door. By this operation, the consumer thus reforms the carton to a substantially closed position such that ants cannot penetrate to its interior. The spout is now also effectively locked such that, should the carton be inadvertently tilted or knocked over, spillage of the contents will not occur.

A third phase of my invention relates to the adaption of certain inventive concepts into the design of cartons 'wherein spouts therefor may be formed separately from either the same or unlike semi-rigid material. The comparatively stronger construction and recloseable feature of my improved spout as previously related heretofore may be incorporated into conventional carton construction, when it is preferred to utilize the desirable spout features without forming the spout member or blank as an integral blank appendage.

Specific features and advantages of my invention will be apparent from the ensuing detailed description when read in reference to the accompanying drawings in which like parts of different forms of the invention are assigned the same numeral designation, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of one embodiment of my invention, showing two carton blanks in their related position as they would appear as part of a master blank.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged portion of FIGURE 1, showing the appendage which will form the spout of a carton and the portion of the carton panel which will function cooperatively with the appendage to form the movable spout.

FIGURE 3 is a partial elevational view of the spout area of the embodiment of my invention first shown in FIGURE 1, here shown as viewed exteriorly when the blank has been folded into the final carton configuration, and with the movable spout in its unopened position.

FIGURE 4 is a partial side elevational view of the portion of a folded carton shown in FIGURE 3, here shown partially cut away to reveal the interior configura- 4- tion of the carton and shown with the formed movable spout portion in an open position.

FIGURE 5 is a plan view of a fragmental part of a master blank showing a plurality of carton blanks in accordance with an alternate embodiment of my invention.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmental elevational view of a folded carton in accordance with the embodiment shown in FIGURE 5, here shown cut away to reveal the inner configuration of the carton.

FIGURE 7 is a plan view of a single carton blank 11- lustrating a modification or alternate form of my invention.

FIGURE 8 is a partial side elevational view of a carton constructed from a blank as shown in FIGURE 6.

FIGURE 9 is a plan view of a spout blank shaped in accordance with the embodiment of my invention as first shown in FIGURE 6.

In the art of constructing disposable cartons from cardboard or similar material, separate carton blanks are cut from a substantially large planar sheet of material. The size and shape of such a sheet is of course determined by the capacity of the automatic machinery which forms the blanks. FIGURE 1 illustrates two individual carton blanks as they would appear as part of a master blank in one embodiment of my invention. The carton blanks in FIGURE 1 are shown after having been stamp-cut, creased, and perforated into identical configurations. As in other figures of the drawing, solid black lines are utilized in FIGURE 1 to denote cut or slit lines in the master blank; straight lines formed by dashes indicate scored fold lines or creases; lines formed by dots indicate perforations in the material to allow the material to break away therealong when the spout is formed into its functional shape by the consumer. Dual, parallel solid black lines such as 22a in FIGURE 3 will serve also in the nature of perforations to allow the material to break away therealong.

A typical carton blank 6 in the portion of a master blank as shown in FIGURE 1 comprises four carton side panels 7, 8, 9, and 10. Extending along one longitudinal edge of the side panel 7 is a narrow glue strip 12 which, when the carton is folded to its final form, will be glued to the inner surface along the outer longitudinal edge of side panel 10. The carton blank 6 further comprises small foldover end flaps 13, 14, 15, and 16, and large fo'ld-over end flaps 17, 18, 19, and 20, all of which are used in forming the ends or top and bottom of the carton.

As FIGURE 1 illustrates, rather than having an appendage extending from an outer carton blank edge such as the outer edge of glue strip 12 as was previously practiced, the carton in accordance with my invention provides for a spout-forming appendage 31 which is extended from the edge of the small end fiap 16. This allows for a considerable savings in waste materials. The appendage of each such carton blank is actually formed from material which was previously a further extension ofthe end flap 15 in an adjacent blank. The size of end flap 15 remains adequate to functional-1y cooperate in the formation of the carton, yet enough material is available to permit the formation of the spout appendage for the next adjacent carton blank.

As shown in FIGURE 2, the relatively small intermediate side panel 9 of carton 6 is provided with a perforatedly-defined end section or access door tab portion 23 and an outer spout wall section or lower door tab portion 22. The section 23 has perforated break-away lines 23a and, joining the ends of lines 23a, a perforated line 23b which defines that edge of section 23 that is contiguous to the spout of wall section 22. Section 22 is designed to break away from section 23 along the perforated line 23b when the spout is fina'lly formed for use, and the section 22 will further separate from the panel 9 by breaking away along lines 22a but will remain hinged to panel 9 along the fold line 22b.

Forming the carton configuration from the blank 6 will include folding and disposing the appendage 31 in proper alignment to cooperate with sections 23 and 22. How this is accomplished can best be described with continued reference to FIGURE 2 which is a view taken from the surface of the blank 6, such surface being the inside surface of the carton yet to be formed. The appendage 31 will be folded inwardly toward the panel 9 along fold line 16a so that the surface of a spacer section of appendage 31 will register with the inner surface of the end panel 16. By thus folding the appendage 31 inwardly along fold 16a the appendage 31 will be in satisfactory alignment against the surface of panel 9 in cooperative relation to sections 23 and 22. Fastening of the spout appendage 31 against the inner surface of panel 9 can be accomplished by the center glue strip 26 shown in FIG- URE 1.

Still referring to FIGURE 2, the appendage 31 comprises the spacer section 30 which spaces it properly distant from the end panel 16 to permit its accurate registration upon the surface of panel 9. The appendage 31 further comprises an intermediate end portion 35 which, when the appendage is folded, will register with section 22 to form the inner portion of the main wall of the movable spout when the carton is finally formed. The sidewalls of the spout (as also shown in FIGURES 3 and 4) will be formed by panels 36 and 37 of appendage 31. The appendage 31 further comprises, between sections 35 and 30, a transversely elongated section 32 having ends or Wings 32a and 32b which will be hereafter described as a primary feature of this invention.

Referring now to FIGURES 3 and 4, which illustrate the spout area of a carton formed in accordance with the carton blank configuration of FIGURE 1, it will be seen that the various portions of the spout appendage 31 register in critical relation to the various portions of panel 9. When the appendage is folded into position to form the integral spout, the spacer section 30 and the end flap section 16 cooperate to form a double-walled end flap which is turned inwardly when the blank is folded to form a carton, and forms part of a rigid and tightly sealed corner of the carton. The intermediate section 32 of appendage 31 is glued with its surface against the inner side of the tab portion 23, and the end wing portions 32a and 32b of section 32 extend substantially beyond the expanse of the tab portion 23 to overlap respective opposite wall portions of panel 9.

When the spout appendage 31 is folded into aligned cooperative position against the inner surface of panel 9, the surface of section 35 is glued against the inner surface of the access door section 22 to form a double thickness Wall for the movable spout. The long dimension of section 35 exceeds the length of section 22 so that the apex 35b of an angle formed by the perforated line 35a will extend beyond the surface of section 22 and over the line 23b to overlap the surface of section 23.

The purpose or function of the various specified sections that make up the movable spout of the completed carton can best be understood by a description of how the carton is used by the consumer. With reference particularly to FIGURE 3, when a person wishes to gain access to the pourable material within the closed andsealed carton, he is required to merely place the thumb or finger tip firmly against the surface of the tab section or access door 23 and press inwardly to cause the carton wall to break away along perforated lines 23a and 23b. The tab section 23 will then swing inwardly since it is movably hinged along its upper edge. The end of the finger may then be inserted into the carton and over and behind the major wall portion of the movable spout 21 (FIGURE 4) made up of contiguous sections 35 and 22. By pulling outwardly against this spout wall with the end of the finger, the lower tab section 22 will break away along lines 22a and will hinge along the pre-creased fold line 2212. As the spout is then pulled 6 out into its functional position, the spout wing sections 36 and 37 will move toward each other as they yield at fold lines 36a and 37a to form the sidewalls of the spout. The carton may now be tilted to pour the contents therefrom by means of the open spout 21.

When the desired amount of the contents has been poured from the carton, the movable spout 21 may be returned to its closed position in the following manner. With particular reference to FIGURE 4, pressure from the finger is exerted against the outer surface of section 22 which makes up the outer wall of the spout 21. The spout 21 is thus pushed toward the body of the carton and beyond the point of its vertical alignment in relation to the carton side panel 9 until it has been rotated to a position just inside the carton. In moving the spout 21 through such an arc, the highest point or apex 35a thereof is caused to drag against the lower edge of the access door or tab 23 and by pushing the upper end of spout 21 a short distance within the carton the upper point or apex 35a of the spout 21 will then, when pressure is released from the outer surface of the spout 21, rest against the inside surface of the tab 23 to prevent the spout from inadvertently swinging open.

The upper double wall portion 9a of side panel 9 which comprises the glued sections 23 and 32 is substantially rigid in its construction. It is hingedly joined at the point of its attachment to the double end flap section made up of portions 16 and 30. Because of the glued relationship between the sections 23 and 32 making up the upper side panel portion 9a the portion 9a tends to remain stationary in its position of 90 to the top surface of the carton. Although the portion 9a may be urged to rotate inwardly, its mode of construction makes it resistive to such motion; when it is caused to swing toward the interior of the carton by the contact of the apex 35a of the spout contacting the lower end thereof, the upper wall portion 9a will, upon being released, swing back to assume its original position at 180 to the side panel 9. The side Wing portions 32a and 32b rest in abutment relation against the interior surface of panel 9 as shown in FIGURE 3 and act as stops to prevent the tab section 9a from swinging outwardly. The tab section 9a being thus prevented from swinging outwardly by means of the wing portions 32a and 32b in turn acts as a means of preventing the movable spout 21 of the carton from inadvertently rotating outwardly to an open position. The apex 35a of the movable spout rests against the inner surface near the lower edge of tab section 9a, and the spout can thus only be intentionally reopened by repeating the original steps of exerting finger pressure against the outer surface to move tab section 9a to cause it to swing inwardly and then moving the end of the finger down to rotate the spout on its fold-line hinge to move it out to the pouring position.

It is anticipated that the specific configuration of a carton blank may be altered or modified while retaining the inventive concept specifically outlined in this description. One modification or alternate embodiment for such a carton blank is illustrated in FIGURES 5 and 6. In this embodiment of the invention carton blanks 40 making up the master blank portion as shown in FIGURE 5 each comprises the same basic side panels and end flaps as illustrated in the first preferred embodiment shown in FIGURES 1 through 4.

The carton 40 of FIGURE 5 however further comprises flap end-tabs 17a, 17b, 18a, and 18b. It Will be noted that end flaps such as 14 and 15 of carton 40 comprise less material or surface area in that the turndown end-tabs such as 18a and 17b are formed from material which, in the embodiment shown previously in FIGURE 1, was material integral to the formation of the flaps 14 and 15. Further, it will be seen that the end-tab 1812 requires for its formation what was previously material utilized in the formation of the end flap 16 and the spacer section 30.

Another difference that will be noted in comparing a carton blank 40 of FIGURE to a carton blank 6 of FIGURE 1, is that in the formation of the carton blank 40 the integral spout appendage 31 is cut from the area defining one of the large end flaps of an adjacent carton blank. The appendage 31 of each carton blank 40 is also furnished with rounded corners which do not interfere with the function of the spout appendage and serve to eliminate the formation of square corners in the cut back area of the large end panel from which the appendage is taken. The smoothly rounded edges are desirable in that they eliminate sharp angles that may constitute the beginning of a tear or rip in the material during the handling and folding of the cartons.

It is not suggested that providing a carton blank with the flap end-tabs such as 17a and 18a is in itself new to the art with this invention. Such tabs have been previously utilized to provide a stronger carton that may be tightly sealed by the use of such tabs to protect the contents therein. However, the provision of such a flap end-tab in combination with the formation of an integral spout as disclosed herein provides a unique and useful result that has never been heretofore presented.

In forming a carton from a blank, the spout-forming appendage 31 would be folded on fold line 16a and be swung through an arc of 180 such that it would come into aligned spout-forming relationship against the spout tab portions 23 and 22 of side panel 9.

In the formation of the carton from the carton blank 40, the spout tab portion 9a as shown in FIGURE 6, which comprises glued together section 23 and the transverse winged section 32, is reinforced by a third glued member, the flap end-tab 18b. Thus, in the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGURES 5 and 6 provision is made for an upper tab portion 9a which comprises a triple-walled thickness. As in the first embodiment described, here too the tab portion 9a is prevented by the winged portions of section 32 from swinging outwardly beyond its point of contact with the inner surface of the opposite upper side areas of the panel but in this embodiment the triple-walled construction provides much greater rigidity to the inwardly-movable tab portion 9a of panel 9. This triple-walled construction is particularly useful in substantially large cartons. Whereas in the previously described construction comprising a double walled thickness in this area, the tab portion 9a Was resistive to movement away from its normal position at 180 to panel 9, the three-ply construction is even more resistive to such motion and will in turn transfer its greater strength and rigidity to the movable spout 21 when such spout is reclosed to rest with its uppermost point against the inside of tab portion 9a. In the formation of cartons utilizing relatively thin semi-rigid material for the body thereof the three-ply construction of the movable tab portion 9a cooperates in combination with the movable and recloseable integral spout 21 of the carton to provide a dependable means of protecting the remaining contents in the carton from absorbing excess moisture from the atmosphere and from invasion by crawling insects.

While the foregoing description has related to several selected embodiments of my invention wherein the spout is formed simultaneously and integral to the carton blank, it is understood that basic inventive concepts of the invention may be nevertheless employed in constructing a movable-spout carton which utilizes a separately-formed spout piece or spout blank. Specific features and advantages of the spout shape and construction as shown in FIGURES 1 through 6 may be transferred for inclusion in the construction of a movable spout carton as illustrated in FIGURES 7, 8 and 9.

In FIGURE 9 there is shown a patch or blank 44 for forming a movable spout which may be patched-glued in position against a pre-perforated side panel of a carton blank. The spout blank 44 is furnished with identical spout-forming portions as provided for appendage 31 shown in FIGURES 1 through 6, however, in this embodiment, the spout blank 44 is formed separately rather than as an extension of the carton blank. The spout blank 44 is shown as having a base portion 38 which may be provided to facilitate handling of the spout blank and for the purpose of carton wall reinforcement. The spout blank may be centrally glued to the panel 9 by providing a substantially longer glue strip 26 on the panel, as shown in FIGURE 7. The base portion 38 will thus serve as a side panel reinforcing member in its glued position against the side panel 9. The base portion 38 is foldable along a hinge or fold line 38a which will functionally cooperate in combination with fold line 22b of the carton panel to provide a stronger longer lasting movable spout hinge 'oint.

FIGURE 7 illustrates a flat carton blank 46 having an intermediate side panel provided with perforatedly-defined tab sections 22 and 23 and an elongated, centrally-positioned, rectangular glue'strip 26. The spout patch or spout blank 44 would be attached against the surface of panel 9 by means of the glue strip 26 to cooperatively function with the movable tabs 22 and 23 in forming a re-closeable pour spout. A phantom rectangular outline 48 indicates the position on the surface of the side panel 9 where a separately-formed spout blank such as patch 44 would be attached.

FIGURE 8 serves to illustrate that the functional features and advantages heretofore described With reference to the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1 through 6 would be retained even though the spout blank is initially formed as a separate unit. It is contemplated that the patch-gluing method of attaching the separately-formed spout blank to a carton blank may be found desirable because it would not entail extensive changeover of present equipment, yet the resulting carton formed in this manner would incorporate the advantageous functional features of the aforementioned integrally-formed spout construction. The method of separately forming a spoutblank for patch-attachment to a carton blank will also permit the use of either the same basic material or material differing in structural characteristics or in comparative cost.

It is understood that the advantages made possible by the design of both my separately-formed spout blank and my improved integrally-formed spout appendage may be incorporated into my aforementioned prior invention U.S. Patent No. 3,184,137. For one example, a spout appendage extended laterally from the edge of the glue strip of a carton blank, as shown in FIGURES l and 2 of that patent, would be functionally more useful if improved by the addition of the tab reinforcing portion 32 disclosed herein. The portion 32, if added to my prior invention, would serve to form a substantially more rigid doublewall portion that would effectively resist outward rotation.

The specific embodiments of my invention herein shown and described are presented for the primary purpose of illustration, with no limitation to such embodiments being intended. It is understood that various modifications or changes may be made by persons skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A master blank for forming integral-spout multisided cartons comprising a plurality of individual carton blanks defined thereon, each of said individual blanks having flap portions for forming top and bottom container walls, with a first sidewall panel thereof having adjacent its upper edge a region with a pair of perforatedly-defined tab portions thereon, a first of said flap portions having extended from the edge thereof an appendage having a cut portion shaped to provide a spout when said appendage is folded back over said first flap so that it is disposed to be adjacent and movable through an opening provided by one of said tabs.

2. A master blank as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said individual container blanks has a recessed region along the outer edge of a second of said flap portions, with said recessed region defining a spout appendage integral to a second of said individual container blanks.

3. A master blank as defined in claim 1 wherein said first sidewall panel is an intermediate panel of said individual blank.

4. A blank for forming a multi-sided carton comprising, a plurality of side panels having end flaps extended therefrom to form the top and bottom walls of said carton, a first of said side panels having a region perforated to define a pair of openable tabs thereon, an integral appendage extended from an edge of said blank that is foldable to be disposed against the region of said openable tabs to provide a movable spout when said carton is formed from said blank; said appendage comprising an end section for fixed registration against a first of said tabs to provide a double-wall portion of said movable spout, an intermediate section for fixed registration against the second of said tabs to provide a double-wall hinged access door to permit access to and rotatable withdrawal of said movable spout; with the surface area of said intermediate section being greater than the surface area of said second tab so that said access door may be urged to swing toward the interior of said carton and is prevented from rotation outwardly by the engagement of said intermediate section against the inside surface of said perforated side panel.

5. A blank as defined in claim 4 further comprising a substantially rectangular glue strip provided on the surface of said perforated side panel, said strip being longitudinally-centrally positioned thereon so that an intermediate portion of said strip is contiguous to the surface of said first tab, and one end of said strip extends contiguous to at least a portion of the surface of said second tab.

6. A blank as defined in claim 4 wherein said end section of said integral appendage which forms the inner wall of said double-wall section of said spout is provided with an edge portion that will frictionally engage against the lower edge of said access door when said spout is hingedy-rotated into said carton so as to provide a means of retaining said spout in a reclosed position.

7. A blank as defined in claim 6 wherein said access door comprises a three-ply construction, with the inner ply thereof being an end tab extended from one of said end flaps.

8. A carton blank for forming a multi-sided container in combination with a separately-formed spout blank which is attached by means of a glue strip against the inside surface of said carbon blank, said carton blank comprising a plurality of said panels having end flaps extending therefrom to form top and bottom Walls of said carton, with one of said side panels being a spout panel and having a perforated region thereon defining a movable access tab and an openable door tab adjacent said access tab; said spout blank comprising a fo'ldable portion for forming a movable pour spout and a tabreinforcing portion adjacent said foldable portion; said spout blank glued to said perforated region of said spout panel, with at least part of the surface of said tab-reinforcing portion joined to the surface of said access tab, an intermediate surface part of said foldable portion being joined to the surface of said door tab, and opposite ends of said tab-reinforcing portion respectively extending beyond said region defining said tabs to overlap the surface of said spout panel adjacent said region.

'9. The carton blank in combination with a separately- I formed spout blank as defined in claim 8, with said spout blank further comprising a panel wall reinforcing portion to which said foldable portion is hingably joined by means of a pre-starnped fold line.

10. The carton blank in combination with a separatelyformed spout blank as defined in claim 8 wherein said spout blank is patch-glued against said spout panel by means of a longitudinally-placed glue strip having the shape of an elongated rectangle, with said glue strip extending substantially the full length of said spout blank to centrally overlap said door tab so that the ends of said glue strip extend to the surface of said access tab and to an area of said spout panel surface which is adjacent said perforated region.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,289,913 12/1966 Svensson 22917 

